Pantie girdle



M. M. CHUBBY PANTIE GIRDLE April 12, 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Feb. 19, 1954 [I INVENTOR:

ATTORNEY April 12, 1955 M. M. CHUBBY PANTIE GIRDLE 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 19. .1954

M. M. CHUBBY PANTIE GIRDLE April 12, 1955 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Feb. 19, 1954 United States Patent PANTIE GIRDLE Marion M. Chubby, Chicago, Ill., assignor to A. Stein & Company, Chicago, 111., a corporation of Illinois Application February 19, 1954, Serial No. 411,488

4 Claims. (Cl. 2-43) This invention relates to an improvement in an article of womens wearing apparel usually called a pantie girdle. The main objects of the invention are to provide a garment of the type indicated which will effectively resist upward riding at the legs and crotch, thereby to attain an important improvement not found in other garments of this type.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be understood by reference to the following specification and accompanying drawings (three sheets) wherein there is illustrated a selected embodiment of the invention.

In the drawings:

Figures 1 and 2 are respectively a front view and a partially front and side view of the improved garment as it appears on the body of the wearer;

Figure 3 is a rear view of the garment as it appears on the body of the wearer;

Figure 4 is a front elevation of the garment as it appears when laid flat;

Figure 5 is an elevation of the outside of the garment in a partially fabricated condition;

Figure 6 is a view looking into the crotch portion of the garment with the legs thereof spread to the sides, the crotch insert element being omitted;

Figure 7 is an elevational view of the crotch insert element;

Figure 8 is a view corresponding to Figure 6 but showing the crotch insert element of Figure 7 in place in the crotch of the garment,

Figure 9 illustrates a step in the application of the crotch insert piece of Figure 7 to the crotch portion of the garment, the garment being shown turned inside out;

Figure 10 is a schematic cross-section on the line 101G of Figure 8;

Figure 11 is a cross-sectional representation of the construction appearing at the line 11-11 of Figure 4; and

Figure 12 is a perspective illustration of certain details of the structure represented in cross-section in Figure 11.

The garment shown in the drawings comprises the main body portion 1 and depending legs 22, a crotch insert 3 and a front panel 4 of material selected to provide front supporting characteristics. The body 1 of the garment, together with the front, back, outside, and a portion of the inside of each leg, is preferably made of two-way stretchable elastic fabric which is embodied in the garment in such an arrangement that the main directions of stretchability are vertically and circumferentially of the garment but which actually imparts stretchability in all directions.

As shown in Figure 5, there are two sections 5 and 6 of such two-way stretchable material, these sections being joined by zigzag stitching, indicated at 7, which preserves the vertical stretchability of the fabric adjacent the seam which constitutes a central back seam as indicated in Figure 3. These sections of material are cut to provide leg portions comprising outer side portions 8, front and back portions 9 and 10, respectively, and lower, forward and rearward inner leg portions 11 and 12 at the respective ends of the lower margins of the sections 5 and 6.

The front panel 4 advantageously may be formed of a pair of sections 13 and 14 of material which is stretchable vertically of the garment but substantially inextensible circumferentially thereof, said panel sections being suitably stitched, as indicated at 15, to the respective body sections 5 and 6 of two-way stretchable material. The stitching 15 is of a zigzag type, as indicated, or may be of other 2,705,801 Patented Apr. 12, 1955 suitable form which will not impair vertical stretchability of the garment along the said seams. A suitable waist band 16, preferably of material which is stretchable in the direction of the length of the waist band, is stitched by suitable stretchable stitching, indicated at 17, to the upper edges of the body sections 5 and 6, the ends of said waist band being united to the upper ends of the front panel sections 13 and 14 by the seams 15.

The lower edges of the leg forming portions may be formed by lengths of longitudinally stretchable tape material stretchably attached to the bottom edges of said garment sections 5 and 6. In this instance, the leg bands are shown as comprising longitudinally extendable tape members 18 attached by zigzag or other suitable stretchable lines of stitching 19 and 20 adjacent the edges of the tape member to the inside of the lower margins of the leg portions of said fabric sections 5 and 6. The lower edges of the said fabric sections are turned inwardly on themselves to lie between the leg tapes 18 and the opposed lower marginal portions of the leg fabric so as to provide a finished edge. This provision of elastic tapes on the inside of the legs permits the use of soft, easily stretchable tape material which, in cooperation with the elastic leg material, provides the desired reinforced leg margins. However, any form of elastic tape may be employed in downwardly extended relation to the lower edges of the leg forming portions of the fabric sections 5 and 6 to attain preferred design effects.

The partially fabricated structure represented in Figure 5 is converted into a circular body construction by joining the edges 21 and 22 in a central front seam 23, the stitching employed for forming this scam, as well as other seams, being selected to avoid impairment of the stretchability of the fabric in the direction of the seam. The ends 24 and 25 of the lower inner leg forming parts of the respective body sections 5 and 6 are also joined by suitable seams, indicated at 26, which, as shown, are disposed at an incline rather than perpendicularly to the bottom edges of the respective legs They may be made perpendicularly of the leg edges if desired by appropriately cutting the material. The leg band tapes 18 are preferably so applied that the ends of the tape do not coincide with the seams 26 so that smooth continuous portions of said tapes extend across said seams 26 to provide smoother surfaces than presented by the seams for engagement with the legs of the wearer.

When the partially fabricated structure shown in Figure 5 has its ends joined in the seams 23 and 26, the garment will have body and leg encircling portions and a crotch opening, indicated at 27 in Figure 6. This crotch opening is closed by a crotch insert 28 (Figure 7) which is of a size to provide a greater peripheral dimension than the corresponding peripheral dimension of the garment around the crotch opening 27. This crotch piece 28 is preferably of a soft, smooth fabric, such as a knitted jersey (tricot) fabric of rayon or nylon, although other soft, absorbent fabrics may be employed. Such materials have smooth and fairly slippery surfaces which, even though held tightly against the wearers body, will slide with reasonable freedom on the body rather than grip and hold its position on the body. The crotch insert 28 of the indicated material is stitched around its periphery to the peripheral or marginal portion of the two-way stretch material of the garment around the opening 27, this stitching being effected with the marginal portion of the two-way stretch material around said opening 27 stretched sufficiently to, in effect, enlarge said opening 27 to substantially the size of the crotch insert 28. This is represented in Figure 9 where the crotch insert 28 is shown partially separated from the edge 27 of the crotch opening and partially stitched at 29 to the marginal portion of the fabric adjacent said opening 27. When the attachment of the crotch piece 28 to the body of the garment is completed and the stretched condition of the two-way stretchable fabric relieved, the crotch insert 23 will be caused to assume a peripherally gathered condition, as indicated in Figure 8. Hence, when the garment is viewed in flattened condition as shown in Figure 8, the crotch insert 28 will present a loose, pouch-like appearance.

The garment, of course, is sized to predetermined standards or to specific dimensions and in all cases the leg openings are made of such s ze that the leg portions will have to be stretched to fit around the thighs of the wearer. Similarly, the main body portion of the garment is also stretched to fit around the body of the wearer, the employment of two-way stretchable material serving to permit more or less universal stretching so that the garment will accommodate itself to various body proportions and will fit smoothly in all areas. The stretching of the garment material in the legs and adjacent the front and rear ends of the crotch part serves to incidentally effect distending of the crotch member 28 to a smooth fitting condition as represented in Figures 1, 2 and 3. By the employment of knitted jersey material of the character mentioned (or other material having similar relatively restricted stretchability) the crotch member is also made sufiiciently stretchable to accommodate itself to the requirement of the body by at least slight stretching so that the indicated smooth fit is readily attainable in a standard garment size and without exact or custom fitting of the garment to the wearer.

Figures 1, 2 and 3 of the drawings are copied from photographs of the garment worn by a model. Figure 2 illustrates the capacity of the leg portions of the garment to accommodate themselves to changed body positions so as to counteract the tendencies of conventional pantie girdle type garments to ride upwardly on the legs of the wearer and into the wearers crotch with attendant discomfort. When a leg is raised, as shown in Figure 2, the material in the body and rear leg portions of the garment is subjected to stretching which tends to pull the garment leg upwardly on the wearers thigh and the crotch portion of the garment tightly into the crotch of the wearer. This tendency is effectively resisted in the described structure because of the provision of substantial areas of the two-way stretch material of the main body portion of the garment, as shown at 11 and 12, in the inner portions of the legs and also the bias cutting of said fabric and the crotch insert member, especially in the vicinity of the lower front and lower rear portions of the seam line between said crotch insert and said body fabric. The said bias cuts are indicated at and 31. Especially because of this bias cutting, the legs of the garment are made sufiiciently resilient and flexible to yield or stretch to a significant extent, mainly lengthwise of the garment legs so that said garment legs may remain substantially in normal position on the wearers legs, thereby to eliminate upward riding of the garment legs and riding of the garment crotch portion into the crotch of the wearer.

In reference to Figure 2, it should be observed that, although there appears to be some increase in the separation of the rear lower edge portion of the garment leg from the top edge of the stocking, this apparent increase in separation is a deception in that it appears to be due more to stretching of the rear surface length of the buttocks and thigh of the wearer when the leg is raised as shown. Such stretching occurs within the garment, as well as between the garment and the edge of the stocking, and when the wearer returns her leg to straight-down position, as in Figure 1, the stretch in the buttocks and thigh is eliminated and the lower end of the rear portion of the garment leg will have returned to its initial relationship to the stocking top as shown in Figure 3 and there will have been no upward riding of the garment legs on the wearers legs.

Another important comfort producing feature of the described garment is that the crotch piece, being initially in the form of a pouch, distends to smooth, body conforming condition when the garment is put on, but is stretched but slightly so that said crotch piece is capable of considerable stretching, especially in the direction of said bias cuts, to accommodate changes in body measurements incident to changes of position by the wearer. This extensibility of the crotch piece permits extensive stretching thereof in one leg portion when required by movement of the wearer, without objectionable pulling or borrowing of material from the other leg portion of the crotch piece. Hence, adjustment of one leg portion of the garment to accommodate movements of the wearer does not significantly alter the fit or position of the other leg portion on the wearer so that uncomfortable pulls and binding actions do not occur.

Experience has shown that the described leg and crotch construction effectively produces the aforesaid non-riding, comfort producing results.

Various details of construction may be embodied in the garment while retaining the above described principal features. For example, in the rear of the garment a reinforcement element may be provided, as indicated at 29, at the juncture of the rear portion of the crotch insert 28 with the body of the garment, and suitable garters 32 may be attached to the lower edges of the legs.

To resist downward folding or wrinkling of the waist band portion of the garment, suitable wrinkle and fold resisting members 33 may be applied to the waist band portion of the garment. In this instance, such reinforcing elements are shown applied in the waist band in line with the upper ends of the seams 1515. They comprise pads of material, such as represented in Figure 12, consisting of outer and inner plies 34 and 35, respectively, of textile fabric material bonded together by an intervening ply 36 of permanently flexible rubber or rubber-like material which bonds the fabric plies 34 and 35 together in a water-proof manner so that the pads 33 will not separate as a result of washing of the garment. The rubberlike component 36 of the pads 33 imparts to these pads the capacity to resist permanent folding or creasing so that, even though the waist band portion of the garment is caused to wrinkle or fold on itself incident to body movements, the said pads 33 will restore the waist band to smooth, unfolded or unwrinkled condition as soon as the forces causing such folding or wrinkling are removed. These pads 33 may embody outer fabrics having an appearance like that of the outer faces of the central panel 4 of the garment.

As shown in Figure 11, each pad 33 may be attached to the Waist band portion of the garment by stitching one end of the pad as indicated at 37 to the inside of the waist band portion of the garment and then folding the pad over the upper edge and downwardly over the outside of the waist band and then applying the stitching 38 around the periphery of the pad to secure it to the body of the garment.

Although but one specific embodiment of this invention has been herein shown and described, it will be understood that details of the construction shown may be altered or omitted without departing from the spirit of the invention as defined by the following claims.

I claim:

1. A pantie girdle garment having body and leg portions of two-way stretchable elastic fabric and comprising two unitary pieces of said fabric respectively providing a side and one leg of the garment, the legs so provided each including a lower end portion having said fabric extending around the entire circumference of the leg, and a crotch piece of soft, smooth-surfaced, stretchable fabric, the body and legs of the garment being formed to provide a crotch opening extending forwardly and rearwardly into the front and back of the body portion of the garment and forwardly and rearwardly into the legs thereof, said crotch piece being of a size having a peripheral dimension which is greater than the peripheral dimension of said crotch opening and being peripherally stitched to the body and leg margins adjacent to said opening with said margins stretched whereby, when attachment of said crotch piece to said body and leg margins is completed and the latter permitted to resume normal unstretched condition, said crotch piece will be gathered to present a loose, pouch-like crotch portion which will be distended to smooth, body-fitting condition as an incident to stretching of said body and leg portions when the garment is put on a body, said elastic fabric and crotch piece being interconnected along bias cuts adjacent the lower inner portions of the legs whereby there is imparted to the legs substantial lengthwise stretchability to supplement circumferential stretchability thereof, the garment being thereby enabled to conform to the body of the wearer throughout the various changes of body and leg positions whereby riding of the garment upwardly on the wearer is prevented.

2. A pantie girdle garment having body and leg portions of two-way stretchable elastic fabric and comprising two unitary pieces of said fabric respectively providing a side and one leg of the garment, the legs so provided each including a lower end portion having said fabric extending around the entire circumference of the leg, and a crotch piece of soft, smooth-surfaced, knitted jersey fabric which is capable of being stretched to only a limited extent as compared with said elastic body and leg fabric and which has greater stretchability in one direction than in a crosswise direction, the body and legs of the garment being formed to provide a crotch opening extending forwardly and rearwardly into the front and back of the body portion of the garment and forwardly and rearwardly into the legs thereof, said crotch piece being of a size having a peripheral dimension which is greater than the peripheral dimension of said crotch opening and being peripherally stitched to the body and leg margins adjacent to said opening with said margins stretched whereby, when attachment of said crotch piece to said body and leg margins is completed and the latter permitted to resume normal unstretched condition, said crotch piece will be gathered to present a loose, pouch-like crotch piece which will be in smooth, bodyfitting condition as an incident to stretching of said body and leg portions when the garment is put on a body, the elastic fabric in said body having greater stretchability in one direction than in a transverse direction and being arranged with its maximum stretchability extending circumferentially of said body and legs and its lesser stretchability extending vertically of the garment, and said crotch piece being arranged with its maximum stretchability extending in the direction of the length of the legs and from side to side of the crotch of the garment and its lesser stretchability extending in the direction of the circumference of the garment legs and from front to rear of the crotch of the garment, said elastic fabric and crotch piece being interconnected along bias cuts adjacent the lower inner portions of the legs whereby there is imparted to the legs substantial lengthwise stretchability to supplement circumferential stretchability thereof, the garment being thereby enabled to conform to the body of the wearer throughout the various changes of body and leg positions whereby riding of the garment upwardly on the wearer is prevented.

3. A pantie girdle garment having body and leg portions of two-Way stretchable elastic fabric and comprising two unitary pieces of said fabric respectively providing a side and one leg of the garment, the legs so provided each including a lower end portion having said fabric extending around the entire circumference of the leg, and a crotch piece of soft, smooth-surfaced, knitted jersey fabric which is capable of being stretched to only a limited extent as compared with said elastic body and leg fabric and which has greater stretchability in one direction than in a crosswise direction, the body and legs of the garment being formed to provide an approximately oval-shaped crotch opening extending approximately equally into the front and back of the body portion of the garment and approximately equally forwardly and rearwardly into the legs thereof, said crotch piece being of approximately oval shape and being of a size having a peripheral dimension which is greater than the peripheral dimension of said crotch opening and being peripherally stitched to the body and leg margins adjacent to said opening with said margins stretched whereby, when attachment of said crotch piece to said body and leg margins is completed and the latter permitted to resume normal unstretched condition, said crotch piece will be gathered to present a loose, pouch-like crotch portion which will be distended to smooth, body-fitting condition as an incident to stretching of said body and leg portions when the garment is put on a body, the elastic fabric in said body having greater stretchability in one direction than in a transverse direction and being arranged with its maximum stretchability extending circumferentially of said body and legs and its lesser stretchability extending vertically of the garment, and said crotch piece being arranged with its maximum stretchability extending in the direction of the length of the legs and from side to side of the crotch of the garment and its lesser stretchability extending in the direction of the circumference of the garment legs and from front to rear of the crotch of the garment, said elastic fabric and crotch piece being interconnected along bias cuts adjacent the lower inner portions of the legs whereby there is imparted to the legs substantial lengthwise stretchability to supplement circumferential stretchability thereof, the garment being thereby enabled to conform to the body of the wearer throughout the various changes of body and leg positions whereby riding of the garment upwardly on the wearer is prevented.

4. A pantie girdle garment having body and leg portions of two-way stretchable, elastic fabric providing the sides and legs of the garment, the legs so provided each including a lower end portion having said fabric extending around the entire circumference of the leg, and a crotch piece of soft, smooth-surfaced, stretchable fabric, the body and legs of the garment being formed to provide a crotch opening extending forwardly and rearwardly into the front and back of the body portion of the garment and forwardly and rearwardly into the legs thereof, said crotch piece being of a size having a peripheral dimension which is greater than the peripheral dimension of said crotch opening and being peripherally stitched to the body and leg margins adjacent to said opening with said margins stretched whereby, When attachment of said crotch piece to said body and leg margins is completed and the latter permitted to resume normal unstretched condition, said crotch piece will be gathered to present a loose, pouch-like crotch portion which will be distended to smooth, body-fitting condition as an incident to stretching of said body and leg portions when the garment is put on a body, said elastic fabric and crotch piece being interconnected along bias cuts adjacent the lower inner portions of the legs whereby there is imparted to the legs substantial lengthwise stretchability to supplement circumferential stretchability thereof, the garment being thereby enabled to conform to the body of the wearer throughout the various changes of body and leg positions whereby riding of the garment upwardly on the wearer is prevented.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,171,913 Bullinger Sept. 5, 1939 2,235,499 Hiller Mar. 18, 1941 2,437,830 McAllister Mar. 16, 1948 2,651,047 Emerson Sept. 8, 1953 2,669,718 Lobbenberg Feb. 23, 1954 

